ALBUQUERQUE – Hello Ice Wolves fans and welcome to the latest edition of the Ice Wolves Den.
Recently the NAHL Ice Wolves announced that Kevin Hartzell will be stepping back and have promoted Assistant Coach Kyle McKenzie to Head Coach and General Manager. Coach McKenzie is extremely popular with the fans and players and played in the ECHL, SPHL, and USHL, where he won a Championship and also Division 1 National Championship at Providence College.
Former Coach Kevin Hartzell says McKenzie’s playing career is a key factor, “Coach Kyle brings with him more personal playing experience than most coaches at this level. You look at his time, four years of D-1 at Providence College, where he played virtually every game over four years, before that, his 2 USHL years playing for Jimmy Montgomery in Dubuque, that’s a lot of games in excellent programs. And that’s before his years in minor pro. He knows what it takes to play consistent, quality minutes night after night and brings that knowledge.” Hartzell continued. “Kyle is not afraid to share his insights, share his emotional and caring side with our players. Most importantly, they know that he knows “what it looks like”. Credibility is important and he has that with the players. They see and know he cares about them individually as well as the team.”
Ice Wolves Owner Stan Hubbard says Coach McKenzie’s commitment was vital to his promotion, “We’ve known Kyle since he first arrived in New Mexico three years ago. He jumped on the ice to help with a kids camp the day he first pulled into The Outpost Ice Arena and met our hockey director, Ben Danford. He’s been helping at every level ever since, which is an approach that is important to our culture and commitment.” Hubbard explained, “When possible, we always like to promote from within and Kyle showed us he is a thoughtful decision maker, patient teacher of the game and fully embraces our commitment to development and community.”
Hubbard also feels McKenzie’s experience helps him connect with the players, “Kyle has had the hockey experiences that our players all hope to achieve. He was coached by some of hockey’s greats and won national championships at the junior and NCAA Division I level, which requires attention to detail when things are the toughest. Kyle’s playing experience in junior hockey in the USHL and in the NCAA with Providence, combined with his playing and coaching experience at the professional level give him the perfect resume for this next challenge, but his commitment to development and what we are building in New Mexico put him over the top.
, “Having been with the NM Ice Wolves for two seasons, the first as equipment manager and development coordinator and this past season as assistant coach, allowed us to experience how Kyle relates to the players and team,” Hubbard continued. “He learned a lot under Coach Hartzell while showing us what he is capable of. Kyle was our first and best choice to take over the development reins and lead our team and players to success.”
Photo Credit Scott Adamson
